I have said to many a person that I’m keeping my own personal memorabilia for the day the Smithsonian opens the National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) museum. Now, it looks like the Smithsonian may be ready to accept some of those items, though there is no plan yet for a building:

From the Washington Blade

“The pursuit of civil rights in America is woven throughout our history,” museum director John Gray said in a statement. “It is a tale of struggle and accomplishment as the nation strives to fulfill its ideals. We are grateful to our donors for assisting us to fulfill our mission to help the public understand the past in order to make sense of the present and shape a more human future,” he said.

The statement didn’t say if or when the new material would be placed on public display at the museum, which is located next to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. at 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W. A museum spokesperson couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

The statement says among those attending a donation ceremony held at the museum on Tuesday were Will & Grace creators David Kohan and Max Mutchnick; transgender flag designer Monica Helms; D.C. photographer Patsy Lynch; Florida photographer Silvia Ross; former D.C. Rainbow History Project official Mark Meinke. Also present, the statement says, were representatives of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center of Baltimore and Central Maryland and the D.C. Cowboys, a gay dance group – all of whom donated items to the museum.

Someday, these items will be on display. Someday, our story will be told with Pride by institutions like the Smithsonian in many parts of this nation (and the world). Someday they will tell the story that we have been telling ourselves for so long. And seeing the Smithsonian take concrete steps toward that someday is another reason it gets better.